European governments must wield their influence and engineering skills more effectively to prevent conflicts over water supply that could threaten global security, the EU’s policy chief, Catherine Ashton, said.
The EU has a strategic interest in ensuring stability in regions with some of the world’s biggest water problems, including North Africa after the Arab Spring revolts and Central Asia, which holds crucial energy reserves.
Ashton said the Nile basin was a particular concern.
“If managed well, the Nile holds the potential to catalyze regional integration and to help bring prosperity and stability to a vast area,” she said in written responses received late on Friday to reporters’ questions. “If handled poorly, each of the Nile countries could feel the negative consequences in their economic and social development.”
Along the Nile, growing demand for water because of population growth, foreign investment and climate change pits Egypt’s new government against upstream states such as South Sudan, Ethiopia and Rwanda, who are frustrated by what they see as Cairo’s disproportionately large share of the river’s water.
In central Asia, one of the world’s driest places, poor Soviet-era planning has left countries heavily dependent on thirsty crops such as cotton and grain, leading to tensions over water use and dam construction.
Uzbek President Islam Karimov said on Friday a dispute over water resources risks provoking military conflict in the former Soviet region.
Ashton, who was hosting a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Cyprus where water security was discussed, said the bloc would offer its know-how to help calm tensions in the region.
“Central Asia’s ... increasing demand on a limited, shared resource carries risks, but also opportunities for cooperation in the entire region and we will continue our efforts to help the region in this direction,” she said.
With the world population predicted to grow to more than 9 billion in 2050, from 7 billion, demand for food is expected to increase by 70 percent in the next four decades, UN forecasts show, putting unprecedented strain on water resources.
“Water shortages, poor water quality, droughts and floods are likely to affect many places ... over the next few years and this can lead to instability and insecurity, which could have a direct bearing on Europe,” Ashton said.
Experts say the EU could help water-starved countries in North Africa better manage their water usage, helping address criticism that Europe has not reacted effectively to challenges stemming from the Arab Spring.
“Where the EU may have a role to play is in the area of water sustainability, reuse of water waste,” said William Lawrence, North Africa project director at the International Crisis Group. “If downstream countries are using less water and using it better, then this can address upstream politics, which can be cantankerous.”
SEEKING CHANGE: A hospital worker said she did not vote in previous elections, but ‘now I can see that maybe my vote can change the system and the country’ Voting closed yesterday across the Solomon Islands in the south Pacific nation’s first general election since the government switched diplomatic allegiance from Taiwan to Beijing and struck a secret security pact that has raised fears of the Chinese navy gaining a foothold in the region. The Solomon Islands’ closer relationship with China and a troubled domestic economy weighed on voters’ minds as they cast their ballots. As many as 420,000 registered voters had their say across 50 national seats. For the first time, the national vote also coincided with elections for eight of the 10 local governments. Esther Maeluma cast her vote in the
Nearly half of China’s major cities are suffering “moderate to severe” levels of subsidence, putting millions of people at risk of flooding, especially as sea levels rise, according to a study of nationwide satellite data released yesterday. The authors of the paper, published by the journal Science, found that 45 percent of China’s urban land was sinking faster than 3mm per year, with 16 percent at more than 10mm per year, driven not only by declining water tables, but also the sheer weight of the built environment. With China’s urban population already in excess of 900 million people, “even a small portion
UNSETTLING IMAGES: The scene took place in front of TV crews covering the Trump trial, with a CNN anchor calling it an ‘emotional and unbelievably disturbing moment’ A man who doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former US president Donald Trump is on trial has died, police said yesterday. The New York City Police Department (NYPD) said the man was declared dead by staff at an area hospital. The man was in Collect Pond Park at about 1:30pm on Friday when he took out pamphlets espousing conspiracy theories, tossed them around, then doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire, officials and witnesses said. A large number of police officers were nearby when it happened. Some officers and bystanders rushed
HYPOCRISY? The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday asked whether Biden was talking about China or the US when he used the word ‘xenophobic’ US President Joe Biden on Wednesday called for a hike in steel tariffs on China, accusing Beijing of cheating as he spoke at a campaign event in Pennsylvania. Biden accused China of xenophobia, too, in a speech to union members in Pittsburgh. “They’re not competing, they’re cheating. They’re cheating and we’ve seen the damage here in America,” Biden said. Chinese steel companies “don’t need to worry about making a profit because the Chinese government is subsidizing them so heavily,” he said. Biden said he had called for the US Trade Representative to triple the tariff rates for Chinese steel and aluminum if Beijing was